Read All About It – Wayne 37

 

[For back story go here: Story so far at 30 Nov 2020 and more recent Wayne eps.]

[Other back story through in-links.]

Super Grime Star ManzDown – who refuses to use or even admit to his given name of Wayne Dempsey – shocked his fandom over this year’s Feeble Festivities by giving his own Mum the cold shoulder. Callous Wayne has banished the Season of Goodwill from his home, showing his determination to freeze out his family while living the highlife in his boyfriend’s penthouse suite. All this at a time when he could so easily bring Comfort and Joy to his nearest and dearest – the ones who he owes most to. 

Dempsey’s mother Cassie broke down in tears recounting how Dempsey has refused to bubble with her or even see her outside at a two metre distance over Christmas. Not only that but the Grime Master has not spoken to his Aunt Phillis Briggs, in the last two weeks: “I had a card with his name in it,” said the woman who raised Dempsey as a child. “But anyone could have written that.”

Meanwhile Cassie confesses: “I’m not the perfect mother,” (despite her musical talents being passed on to her son) “but this is a time for understanding, loving and giving. I’m willing to give everything for my boy, I always have. I’m also willing to forgive and forget, but to be treated like this is breaking my heart.”

Cassie says she fears her son is too much like his father who was also quick to take advantage of kind giving people and slow to show thanks. “I worry that Wayne’s achievements have only come about because of the breaks and help other people have given him. If he doesn’t start giving back soon he might lose everything very quickly.”

Last year Wayne took to song writing to bad mouth his Aunt Briggs, publicly accusing her of refusing to give him the identity of his real mother. And yet when Cassie came forward, Wayne met her only a few times on a park bench and refused to let her become part of his family. Not only this but he has forbidden her to tell her side of the story and enlisted the help of his boyfriend to warn her off. Even so Cassie is now courageously telling her story for the first time because she feels it’s important that the fans see her son for who he really is.

“I don’t know what he’s thinking,” she says, “but maybe he’s worried that having a proper mum and family is somehow not cool enough. I hate the fact that it’s more important to him that he has this kind of ‘loner’ image when the truth is he has a family and is loved. It’s just that he doesn’t want to admit it.”

All this has come at a time of global crisis when many families and friends across the country have come together in an unprecedented way in order to get through these hard times. “Wayne just wants to have everything his own way,” says Cassie. 

As Cassie points out, Wayne has been far more concerned with his new partner Dave, a restaurant owner who, like many in his trade, has been hit hard by the pandemic. However, unlike many others in the trade he has been able to use Wayne’s celebrity status to boost his sales, sometimes even having the megastar serve burgers to adoring fans (see Selfish Burger Selfie on page 4). When they’re not trying to serve food – occasionally taking liberties with local lockdown rules – the terrible two hide themselves away in Dave’s luxury apartment, complete with stunning views across the city.

Wayne has sometimes ventured out from this hideaway to exercise in a park. However even at this time he seems unfriendly and ungrateful to his fans, refusing to acknowledge their friendly advances and on one occasion accosting a fan who simply wanted an autograph and photo with the star. This resulted in the fan being chased by Wayne in an aggressive manner (see pics on pages 4,5,6 & 8). “I thought he was a straight up nice guy,” said Superfan Graham Sprocket, “but now I’m never buying another track of his. Although I might listen to him on Spotify, I guess.” 

While there’s no doubt that music has always provided a way for people to rebel, Wayne’s ManzDown image has always claimed to be truthful, supposedly to offer something ‘real’ for his fans. It’s now clear that he is not being truthful about his background or in his lyrics. It’s shocking that he can have had so much success off the back of being a ‘loner’ when he choses to reject the people who love and support him. This dishonesty does not look good for Wayne, nor for the future of the music scene of which he is the supposed figurehead.

At the end of the day, will fans finally wise up to the fact that Wayne Dempsey is as shallow and worthless as his now washed-up song-mates BarnStormerz?